Date: 11 Jan 1995 20:26:14 GMT

Chaos magick is one of the newest and currently most popular inspirations among modern-urban-techno-shamans.
This is the cutting edge of ceremonial magick. It involves more spontaneity and attempts to integrate shamanism a little more directly.

It is influenced by cyberpunk, modern physics, Freud and Jung (synchronicity), Austin Osman Spare, Chaos science, taoism, tibetan buddhism, many forms of shamanism, Gleick and fractals, IOT (founded by Peter Carroll), TOPY (temple of psychic youth), and a host of writers - many of them science fiction writers.

Spare was not the first to practice this sort of magick, but he was the first to call it Chaos. He was one of the first to bring it to the ceremonial genre and therefore "legitimize" it.

There is a direct connection between chaos and cyberpunk genres, and many if not most chaos mages have cyber connections. There was an article on cyberpunk in a major periodical recently. I think it was Time. I think it was in February'93 - so its mainstream enough.

References (in chaotic order):
*"Defining Chaos" by Mark Chao.
*"Kathulu Magik" by Haramullah
*"Liber Nigris" by Frater Nigris

Sorcery as Virtual Mechanics by Stephen Mace

The Collected Works of Austin Osman Spare by Christopher Bray

The Book Of Pleasure by Austin Osman Spare

Anathema Of Zos by Austin Osman Spare

A Book Of Satyrs by Austin Osman Spare

Images and Oracles of Austin Osman Spare by Kenneth Grant

The Early Work by Austin Osman Spare

Excess Spare by Austin Osman Spare

Stations In Time by Austin Osman Spare

Chaos: Making a New Science by James Gleick

Turbulent Mirror by John Briggs & F. David Peat

Liber Null & Psychonaut by Peter J. Carroll Practical Sigil Magick by Frater U.D.
Masks of the Illuminati by Robert Anton Wilson

The Illuminatus Trilogy by Robert Anton Wilson and Robert Shea

Cosmic Trigger by Robert Anton Wilson An Introduction to Chaos Magick by Adrian Savage
 

*Published on the net....ftp.lysator.liu.se /pub/magick and ptero.soar.cs.cmu.edu /occult (will change withing 6 months).
Both have kaos/chaos directories. These essays were uploaded with permission of the authors so copyright is not a problem.

Comments / Other:
o "Defining Chaos" by Mark Chao is an excellent introduction.
o "Kathulu Magik" by Haramullah is an interesting essay on theory by a practitioner.
o "Liber Nigris" by Frater Nigris also falls within the chaos genre, though more dark than most.
o Kenneth Grant, whose works are of the most respectable.
o Ray Sherwin, whose great influence goes largely unrecognized.
o Hakim Bey, whose work 'Chaos' is interesting and other writings nice.
o Adrian Savage, who has many books including An Introduction to Chaos Magick, which lists other authors (published by Magickal Child).

- written by Peggy, stealing most of it from Tagi
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This document is Copyright (c) 1995, authors cited.